Understanding how to execute a business process within a company or enterprise in order to maximize revenue, profit, or other metrics, is of enormous importance and has a significant impact on the company's success in the marketplace. Ideally therefore, business processes should be monitored, modeled, and optimized in much the same ways as scientific or manufacturing processes. Thus, the same management tools and methodologies as typically applied to manufacturing processes, for example six sigma and “lean” management techniques, can and should be applied to business processes.
Six sigma is a rigorous and disciplined methodology that uses data and statistical or statistics-like analysis to improve operational performance. The term “sigma” refers a statistical expression of numbers defects per numbers opportunities, with “six sigma” corresponding to 3.4 defects per million. “Lean” is a term used to refer to techniques originally developed in the automobile industry to improve manufacturing performance. Lean and six sigma methodologies can be applied together.
When a business process is being analyzed using either a six sigma or a lean technique (or both) the faster the analysis can be accomplished with accuracy, the sooner the enterprise can reap the benefits. Thus, tools and methods to make the six sigma, lean, or other process being used to improve or operationalize excellence of the business process can be important.